Nairobi during the launch of 2023 KDF Recruitment.
The 2023 KDF recruitment was officially launched on the 28th of August. The event was officiated by the Vice Chief of Defence Forces (VCDF) Lieutenant General Jonah Mwangi, at the Defence Headquarters at Hurlingham, Nairobi. The exercise commenced immediately at all the publicized recruiting centers nationwide. The exercise is expected to end on Friday 8 September 2023.
Recruitment into the KDF is necessitated by human resource and capacity gaps in various military establishments and the need for continuous alignment with the defense and security environment.
In his address, the VCDF disclosed that the recruitment shall be conducted between 8.00 a.m. and 5.00 p.m. daily in 374 centers across all 47 counties and shall recruit officer cadets, recruits, and Defence Forces constabularies drawn from ex-KDF and ex-National Youth Service (NYS) officers.
The Recruitment aims at painting a national picture by having military officers and service members selected from across the country to bring about diversity in the Armed Forces.
The VCDF implored the members of the public to desist from fraud and other corruption malpractices since it violates the integrity pillar of KDF core values adding that intelligence and anti-corruption teams have already been activated.
Many youths were left disheartened as they were turned out from the exercise for various reasons like height, tattoos, birthmarks, criminal record and not meeting the minimum academic requirements just to mention a few.
In Lamu Central, women were denied access to try their luck as Lieutenant Colonel Hamisi Msagha on Monday 28th August, issued a statement that there were no vacancies for women as all slots were already filled. This left a lot of questions as to whether gender balance in the military was really a thing as this was not their first time being locked away and denied a chance to participate.
In Mandera and Garissa, there arose an issue of the gender gap as on Monday only 4 and 5 women respectively participated in the recruitment, but also many were turned away due to being in possession of fraudulent documents while others never met the minimum academic qualifications and also due to medical issues that is dental and skin.
In Baringo, the major challenge that disqualified a lot of youths was low body weight which could be credited to their pastoral lifestyle and medical issues.
Many youths appealed to the government to make certain considerations when it comes to different counties. Also, small issues like misspelled names in certificates should not be a reason for disqualification. Many called for the review of the recruitment criteria.
The Defence Forces, like many Kenyan government institutions, has been tainted by corruption allegations.
Because the operations of the military have been traditionally cloaked by the ubiquitous blanket of “state security”, the corruption has been less in public view, and thus less subject to public scrutiny and notoriety.
But in 2010, credible claims of corruption were made with regard to recruitment.
Since 2017, the KDF has recorded about 80 cases of fraud, many of which have since been investigated and about 56 of the cases have been closed through the KDF internal process.
So far only one case of corruption has been reported whereby two people were arrested on Tuesday in Magarini Sub-County by the EACC after they had solicited and received Sh.250,000 to facilitate recruitment to the KDF.
The two claimed that they can be able to facilitate the complainant’s admission to KDF without having to go through the actual process as they had very deep connections in the KDF duping him into giving them the demanded bribe of Sh.250,000
This comes after the CS of Defence, Aden Duale, had assured Kenyans that the recruitment shall be free, fair, and above board for all qualified Kenyan youths including those from marginalized communities. Also launching a toll-free number for people to call when they witness a case of graft or approached by a conman.
The Kenya Defence Forces are made up of the Kenya Army, Kenya Navy, and Kenya Air Force. The current KDF was established, and its composition is stipulated, in Article 241 of the 2010 Constitution of Kenya; it is governed by the KDF Act of 2012.
during the CDF change of guard ceremony at the DOD, Nairobi.
Its main mission is the defence and protection of the sovereignty and territorial integrity of Kenya, Recruitment to the KDF is done on a yearly basis.
Under the KDF Act of 2012, The Defence Council shall recruit and appoint members of the Defence Forces, other than the members who are State Officers, and advertise the chances allocated per county at least thirty days before recruitment.
The Ministry of Defence has partnered with various stakeholders including the police for action amid reports cons are demanding up to Sh400,000 for calling letters for one to join the KDF.
Being shortlisted is only the first step in the Recruitment process, Physical verification of documentation and medical examinations will come after which shall be more vigorous will be conducted after.
The Military had assured the people of Kenya that this year things will be different when it comes to efforts to curb corrupt cases as it plans to use Intelligence Officers, the EACC, and the media.